


Rarity

by Echo_S1



Category: The Flash - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, F/M, Falling In Love, Gen, Love Confessions, M/M, Past Abuse, Symbiote Virus
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-24
Updated: 2020-03-24
Packaged: 2021-03-01 04:15:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 14,261
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23299156
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Echo_S1/pseuds/Echo_S1
Summary: The world has been lost to parasites: blood-thirsty monsters who consume human flesh. They were created when a virus swept over the planet, engulfing hordes of human hosts with symbiote-like properties, gifting them speed, strength, claws, and fangs. Now, as Bruce Wayne and Lex Luthor partner to look for the cure, they're under the pursuit of General Elling, who wants nothing more to continue his military control of the last outposts of humanity on their planet. But, what happens if the cure isn't what they think? Will this little parasite be the key to saving humanity, or ending it? And why is it so damn attached to Bruce?
Relationships: Barry Allen/Bruce Wayne, Diana (Wonder Woman)/Clark Kent
Kudos: 15





	1. Destruction

**Chapter 1: Destruction**

Discovery. Transformation. Disaster. That was the order that the world fell in. 

Scientists in the United States discovered a virus. They dubbed it “Symbiosis”, mainly because the form that the virus took was similar to a symbiote. Yellow in color with mixed red outlines, those infected took the form of deadly predators sporting razor-sharp teeth, claws, and raptor-like feet. 

That’s how scientists found out about the transformation process. The amount of deaths per state rose steadily until several of the infected were caught, contained, and forced to undergo a thorough examination. Before the eyes of a medical board, human beings transformed into bloodthirsty beast, desiring nothing more but the predation of the creatures around them. 

Disaster quickly followed. The infection spread by saliva, and by a simple bite, dozens of people would become infected within a day. They’d cough, sputter, and eventually collapse. Then, transform to hunt others. 

Men, women, children, elders. No one was safe, save for the animals and plants. There was no chance of surviving the infection once someone was bitten.

Millions of people were lost to the beasts, to the virus, leaving others to race for cover under the instruction of their government. Under the instruction of the dying president, military installments known as Citadels were created, housing the citizens, under the protection of the expansive military. Armed personnel at every entrance, and exit, scanning all those who entered and left for signs of infection. The risk of spreading the infection was one people were unwilling to take. 

Now under the protection of the US military, scientists across the globe gathered in various laboratories, hoping to analyze the virus for any sign of a cure. They created sedatives, poisons, gasses, and medications, all in an effort to combat the infected. Their efforts have so far been in vain. Bodies litter the streets of Gotham, Metropolis, and any other major city, their once magnificent cultures in ruins. 

In the meantime, the citizens created a new name for their bloodthirsty predators:  _ Parasites _ . 


	2. Council

**Chapter 2: Council**

Before the president died, he entrusted the Justice League to enforce peace within the citizens of the great county they presided. On the president’s instruction and with the support of the armed forces, Bruce Wayne led the Justice League to establish a sense of unity within the people of the Citadels, creating shelters, establishing a food source, and enforcing certain laws that would ensure the peoples’ safety. Unfortunately, several Leaguers had been lost in the service of their country, their memories etched in the Hall of Justice for as long as it would stand. The Justice League utilized the Watchtower as their current headquarters, while some managed the JLA Satellite from space in order to monitor the activities on Earth. 

Each member of the JLA was given a management position from The General, or General Wade Elling, as head of the military division in America, based on their abilities: Diana Prince (Wonder Woman) and Clark Kent (Superman) were responsible for construction, Hal Jordan (Green Lantern) was responsible for scavenging missions, Arthur Curry (Aquaman) was responsible for cross-country communication and undersea transportation, Kendra Saunders (Hawkgirl) was responsible for Citadel defenses, and Jon Jones (Martian Manhunter) was responsible for spatial monitoring from the Watchtower and Satellite. Bruce Wayne (Batman) himself was responsible for managing each Leaguer, the telecommunications, and assisting Lex Luthor with the cure research, which included gathering new subjects, sometimes executing subjects, and patrolling the Citadels for infected individuals. 

Currently seated within a simple conference room in the Hall of Justice, Bruce awaited the arrival of the rest of the Justice League, and Lex Luthor, his scientific partner. Lex Luthor was a genius, that was certain, but the mystery of a cure was certainly stumping the man. Bruce had walked in, more than once, on the scientist’s frustrating episodes of sleep-deprivation driven anger, aimed at nothing but his equipment. 

Seated at the conference table, Bruce patiently sipped a cup of instant coffee, ears pricking up when he heard footsteps approaching from the door outside. 

“Morning, Bats. How are ya?” Hal asked as he opened the door happily, smiling broadly at the Detective as he entered.

“Just fine, thank you. You seem to have slept well.” Bruce replied. 

Hal gathered himself a cup of coffee, nodding. “I did, yeah. I had a good dream about finding a stash of equipment.” Hal smiled. 

“I’m glad you can still dream.” Bruce smirked. 

“Come on, Bats. Don’t be so negative.” Hal sighed, moving to sit beside the Detective. The door opened and in walked Clark and Diana, also seeming cheery from a night’s rest. 

“Good morning, Bruce and Hal.” Diana greeted pleasantly. 

“Morning, princess.” Hal smiled back, sipping on his coffee. 

“Are we still waiting for Kendra, Jon, and Arthur?” Clark asked as he sat down. His glasses shifted on his face slightly, dipping towards his nose. ‘He looks kind of stupid with those on.’ Bruce noted. 

“Yeah. I heard Arthur’s busy this morning, unfortunately, though. So, we won’t see him.” Kendra explained as she walked in, followed by Jon. 

“Indeed. As the manager of cross-country communication, he is quite busy.” Jon added. 

The Leaguers chatted aimlessly for a few moments while waiting for Lex Luthor’s arrival. Upon the door opening once more, heads turned in the direction of the exhausted scientist, who stumbled into the room with arms full of files. “Good morning, everyone.” Lex greeted, placing his files on the table and taking position as head. 

“You look terrible.” Hal blurted. 

“Hal! That’s rude!” Diana scolded, frowning deeply at the man. 

Lex nodded, waving the “insult”. “Yes, I understand. I haven’t slept for several days. I’ve been too busy working on a project with Mr. Wayne.” Lex replied, adjusting his shirt slightly. 

“Take your time then, Lex. We won’t rush you.” Bruce encouraged. 

“Thank you.” Lex replied. The scientist had dark circles under his eyes, signalling his sleepiness. He quickly fetched a cup of coffee for himself, apparently doubling the portion of sugar and cream. Bruce noted that the scientist didn’t reject the coffee, though, which was interesting. 

Lex switched on the holographic projector in the center of the table, syncing his tablet to it in order to display the files he wished to show. The projector showed a series of images, mainly scans taken from one of the various parasite subjects being contained in the Lexcorp building. They included muscular scans, tissue scans, skeletal scans, and others of varying importance. 

“Recently, Mr. Wayne and I have been developing combative instruments for the citizens to use in times of a crisis. Those include a smoke grenade containing a sedative known as SD369, which can be used to instantly put a parasite to sleep, using a nervous system depressant. This gas has no effect on humans, but it will put down a parasite for roughly an hour. We’ve been testing it with several of our contained subjects, and so far, it’s seemed very effective.” Lex explained.

The images on the projector turned to a video showing a parasite in a blank room. The parasite wasn’t moving, due to the lack of stimulus from prey being around, and was simply standing in the center of the area. A panel opened on the wall and one of the said smoke grenades tumbled onto the floor, alerting the parasite. Instantly, the creature began to screech, moving to attack the grenade. The grenade exploded in a cloud of white smoke, fogging the camera, before the parasite collapsed, lying still on the floor. The room was quickly ventilated, revealing the fearsome creature lying dormant on the ground, sound asleep. 

“It’s very effective on parasites. When can this be field tested?” Hal asked. 

“As soon as we create some basic testing batches to send out into the field.” Lex replied. 

“Good. It’ll be useful in defending this place.” Kendra agreed. 

“How has the research into the Symbiosis cure been going? Any progress?” Jon asked. The topic was a sensitive one, but Bruce admired Jon’s bravery in bringing it up for conversation. 

“We’ve attempted to develop a vaccine, entirely synthetic, but every effort we’ve made doesn’t work. The concept of working with an oobleck-like virus is a delicate one, and since the virus changes from salivary gland to a blood-base transference method, there’s no proper way to cure it. It never stays in one state, I’m afraid. Mr. Wayne, do you have any input?” Lex asked, pleading for help in his own way. 

“Mr. Luthor is correct. Since the “symbiotes”, as we’ve taken to call them now, don’t take a particular form until entirely infecting a host, we don’t have a way to cure them. We have made injectables to sedate them, and kill them, but we have nothing that will adjust to cure the transformation segment between the salivary glands and the blood. It’s this shift that prevents a cure from being made, because there’s nothing in existence that can transfer states like that. Nothing programmable, like a vaccine, at least.” Bruce explained. 

“Don’t give up, guys. We’re counting on you. You’ve done well so far, so just keep pushing, and I’m sure you’ll do something great.” Kendra encouraged. “Every symbiote we’ve managed to analyze is never the same. They vary depending on the host, and until we determine how they create those variances, there’s no way to develop a cure. I’m sorry.” Lex sighed, rubbing his eyes. 

“We’ll keep working on it. There’s always a chance that the virus will evolve and take a purely blood-based form.” Bruce replied, an element of hope to his voice. 

“Has anything else been determined about the parasites that we should know?” Diana asked curiously. Her hands were knitting together, signalling her uncomfort with the previous subject. 

“We’ve determined how they get their increased speed. It’s based on their cellular activity. If, say one of the hosts was a track star, they’d have more cellular energy, which would give the infected host more speed.” Lex explained. He displayed a diagram with a running parasite’s statistics on the projector. 

“They haven’t been able to move above sixty miles an hour. But, the fastests ones are known to reach at least eighty.” Bruce added. 

“So, all we’ve got is how they function and ways to kill them.” Kendra thought aloud, burying her face in her hands. 

Diana stood up, heading out the door. The group could hear the woman stomping around outside the conference room, clearly frustrated. “She’s quite tired of killing parasites. She’s devoted a lot of time to these citizens, and her only wish is to protect them.” Jon explained quietly. The Martian was also cautious when he spoke, seemingly unwilling to upset anyone else. 

“That’s all I had to bring you today, I’m sorry.” Lex stated, gathering his files and turning off the projector. 

“Don’t apologize, Lex. We’ve worked hard, and it’s about time the universe shows us a little respect.” Bruce replied, showing the man to the door. Bruce watched the scientist scamper off to the Lexcorp building, his own current place of work, stumbling in his steps every now and then. Bruce retreated back to the conference room to find Diana had returned to the table, now in a calmer state of mind. 

“I apologize for leaving.” the princess stated, rubbing her temples. There was dust on her knuckles, so she must’ve punched something solid, similar to the walls outside the conference room. 

“We’re all under stress right now. Our best option is to take it easy and tend to the most recent issues.” Clark offered. Bruce had to admit, the man knew what he was talking about. 

“Agreed. I’m going to Lexcorp. There’s more work to be done there, and I personally don’t want to be stuck babysitting Lantern.” Bruce stated, smirking at Hal. 

“Hey!” Hal barked, pouting like a puppy. 

“We’ll be around.” Kendra replied, nodding as the Detective excused himself. 


	3. Encounter

**Chapter 3: Encounter**

Bruce headed off to the Lexcorp building, entering the testing branch within just a few minutes and finding Lex back in the main lab with another cup of coffee in hand. Bruce slipped into a lab coat and walked to one of the tables, a clipboard in hand, Lex turning to him with a relieved expression.

“Oh. It’s you.” he stated. The scientist rubbed his bald head, sighing as he sipped his coffee. 

“Who else would it be? Your assistant?” Bruce joked as he slipped a slide underneath a microscope. 

“I thought you were The General, coming to pester me about the cure research again.” Lex replied. 

“He’s still bothering you? I would’ve assumed he had the decency to leave a man of science to his instruments.” Bruce chuckled. 

Lex smirked, writing several notes down on his own clipboard. “The man is pushy, for sure, but he’s educated in his own way.” the scientist replied. 

Bruce looked into the microscope, gazing upon one of the blood samples taken from one of their parasites in the lower testing branch, specifically dubbed the containment sector. The blood sample didn’t seem to show anything new, but he was still determined to find something related to the cure within it. 

“We’re going to need more subjects within the next few days. Deathstroke is out on a mission with his hands full, so I was hoping you could allot some time to pick some out for me, if you don’t mind.” Lex requested. 

Bruce looked up at him with a charming smile. “Of course, Lex. Anything for a friend.” the Detective replied. 

Bruce quickly discarded his lab coat and headed out to the hangar, more comfortably dressed in his proper suit. The Batplane sat where it always was, having gone through some minor modifications, but was clean and prepared for him. Making a note in the hangar’s logs, Batman piloted the small aircraft out to Central City, far enough away that any parasites chasing the plane would give up before he reached the Citadel on the return trip. He alighted the plane in a simple open plaza, mostly destroyed from various truck explosions gone off throughout the area. 

Cloaking the plane, Batman quietly slipped out of the aircraft and descended into the desolate streets, his trusty modified magnum at his side. 

There were several parasite population-heavy areas throughout Central City, being that it had one of the highest populations in all the United States, yet Batman hadn’t seen a single parasite in the vicinity since exiting his aircraft. 

‘They definitely heard the plane land. Why aren’t they around?’ Bruce reasoned, his ears and internal sensors spiked to the maximum. There wasn’t a single sound, save for the near-silent sound of the Detective’s footsteps, and the faint breeze blowing throughout the area. 

Suddenly, the hair on the back of Batman’s neck stood on end. Someone was behind him. Whipping around, Bruce drew his magnum, slipping the safety off just in case. 

“Holy shit, Bats. It’s just me.” Hal barked, putting up his hands in surrender. 

“Have you ever learned never to sneak up on me?” Batman asked, smirking. 

“Like I could ever scare you.” Hal chuckled. 

“What’re you doing out here, Lantern? I thought you were busy today?” Batman asked. 

“I am. I’m spending the day scavenging this sector of Central. Glad I ran into you before the parasites woke up.” Hal smiled playfully. 

Bruce raised an eyebrow. “Have you found anything useful?” the Detective questioned. 

“Guns, ammo, meds. Good stuff, for a single haul.” Hal replied. The green-clad hero seemed slightly nervous in close proximity to the black-clad hero, as if something was bothering him. 

“Something on your mind, Lantern?” Batman asked. There was no answer. Hal seemed lost in his thoughts, gazing off into the distance. 

“Lantern.” Batman tried again, Hal’s eyes snapping to look at him. 

“Yeah, what?” Hal asked, startled. 

“Something wrong?” Batman asked, replacing the safety on his magnum. 

Hal rubbed the back of his neck, but nodded reluctantly. “Yeah, I saw something that’s really bothering me.” Hal confessed. 

“Do you want to talk about it?” Batman asked. 

Hal sighed, but nodded once more. “I was putting down some parasites out towards the business district, and I...saw one go full-animal on another one. It was terrifying to watch.” Hal explained. 

Bruce paused. “You watched a parasite  _ eat _ another  _ parasite _ ?” the Detective asked. 

“Yeah. They were screeching and screaming at each other, and the little yellow one was trying to get away, but the red one just kept-” Hal began before Batman cut him off. 

“The  _ red _ one?” Batman asked, pausing the Lantern’s train of thought. 

“Well, yeah. It was red, like scarlet. Really scary to look at, to be honest.” Hal replied. 

Bruce turned to Hal, looking him dead in the eye with the most serious of expressions. “Lantern,  _ where _ and  _ when _ did this happen? I  _ need _ to know,  _ now _ .” Batman demanded. 

“Just fifteen minutes ago, in the business district. I’ll show you. Follow me.” Hal replied, intimidated by the Detective’s interest in his story. 

“While we walk, keep telling me what happened.” Batman replied as the duo directed their efforts towards entering the business district. 

“I was taking out a scouting party, and I thought I got all of them, but I was chasing the last one, hoping to kill it before it could alert any others, but by the time I turned the corner, it was on the ground, fighting another parasite. A red parasite was on top of it, biting and literally tearing it to shreds. The poor thing was screaming and crying in pain, until the parasite attacking it just leaned down and tore out its throat, spraying blood all over the place. After the red parasite killed it, it just started ripping off pieces and eating it.” Hal explained. 

“Where did the red parasite go after it killed the other?” Batman asked as they entered the business district. True to Hal’s word, there were various parasite corpses scattered about the area. 

“It looked up at me, and I bolted. I was too scared, sorry.” Hal replied. 

“That’s fine, Hal. We  _ have _ to find it, though. This new parasite could possibly be the one chance humanity has against this virus.” Batman replied. 

Hal nodded, hovering in the air right next to him. “I’ll give it an eagle-eye glance. See if I can see anything from up here.” the Green Lantern offered. 

“Com me if you spot it.” Batman replied, watching the glowing green figure ascend into the sky a few dozen feet. Hal kept his head on a swivel as he hovered around, Batman creeping along the deserted streets, covering the ground view. As the duo moved about the business district of Central City, Batman picked up on little tracks along the ground that he used as markers for the parasite-heavy areas. 

Hal suddenly bolted forward, flying fast down the street past Batman, before making a right. “This way, Batman!” the Lantern called, Batman picking up speed using his own legs. 

As he rounded the corner, Batman found Hal cautiously approaching the red parasite, which was entangled in barbed wire laid by the US military during the first stages of the infection. The poor creature was thrashing wildly in its bonds, the spiked metal wire only digging deeper into its flesh as it struggled. 

“Hal, take a few steps back.” Batman ordered, keeping his own distance a set fifteen feet away. Nodding, Hal returned to the Detective’s side, biting his lip. “That’s the parasite you saw?” Batman asked. 

“Yeah, exact same one.” Hal replied, scratching the back of his neck. The red parasite gave a panicked screech, startling the Green Lantern into jolting slightly beside the Detective. 

“Take a few deep breaths, Lantern. We need to come up with a plan. We can’t be transporting a parasite as panicked as this back to the Citadel.” Batman reasoned. 

Nodding, Hal took several deep breaths, calming his racing heart. “I’m good now.” he stated. 

Batman turned to glance at their target, wrapped tightly in various strands of barbed wire. The creature’s knees had been tied tightly together with the sharp wire, preventing its escape, but its feet still had the ability to thrash and kick against its attackers. Its wrists had been wrapped in several layers of the wire, of which were slung against its chest with wire that wrapped around its shoulders and hips, entangling its backside and wrapping over the top of its head, before crossing back across its face, specifically in between its jaws. More wire had layered itself around the parasite’s throat, the spikes drawing blood pretty much wherever they were tight enough against the creature’s flesh. The wire wrapped around the parasite’s knees trailed out into the main spools along the ground, keeping its back pressed against the dirt while it thrashed in panic. 

“This could be difficult.” Batman admitted, examining the extensive bonds of the parasite from a distance. 

“No duh.” Hal retorted, constructing a pair of wire cutters using his ring’s energy. 

Batman raised a hand, stopping him. “Let’s wait on that.” the Detective stated, lifting his modified magnum up to his eye-level. Double checking that it was loaded with a sedative and nothing else, Batman carefully crept up to the parasite, reaching a hand out towards it. 

Screeching in terror, the parasite thrashed in panic, its blue irises shrinking down to nothing more than the size of a pin. 

Taking hold of the parasite’s smooth dome, Batman forced the creature’s head into lying against the dirt, pressing the barrel of his modified magnum into some of the flesh of its unprotected throat. 

From its position on the ground, the parasite gazed up at the Detective with eyes full of terror, its jaw forced open by the wire in its mouth, its breathing ragged and body shaking. Batman did nothing for several seconds, just looking into the terrified eyes of the predator he’d forced into submission, the duo’s wills battling silently for dominance. 

Slowly, the parasite broke eye-contact, resting its head against the ground in anticipation for Batman’s firearm to penetrate its flesh. “Sorry, but we need you.” Batman whispered, pulling the trigger. 


	4. Specimen

**Chapter 4: Specimen**

Donning his lab coat as he returned to Lexcorp, Bruce had a pair of hangar staff transport the red parasite back to Lexcorp’s testing branch, where he met Lex in the containment sector. Upon arrival, Lex had had the barbed wire removed from the creature, before it was placed in a containment cell where the research staff would have easy access to it. As Bruce entered the containment sector, he found Lex talking heatedly with a pair of military personnel who regularly patrolled the containment sector’s main floor. 

As the scientist saw Bruce approach, the scientist quickly dismissed the two soldiers, flashing the Detective a wonderful smile. “Glad you made it back.” Lex greeted. 

“Glad to be back. How’s it going?” Bruce asked, adjusting his lab coat and gloves. 

“Very well. We managed to get the barbed wire off of it before the sedative wore off, but that was about it. We’ll have to put it down again before long, so we can draw blood, salivary samples, do the scans, and the rest.” Lex replied. The scientist looked excited, so that was a good sign. 

“You seem happy to see it, as a specimen, of course.” Bruce smirked playfully. 

“Only another scientist would understand, such as yourself, Mr. Wayne. It’s exciting to see a natural variant in the parasites. And since another like it hasn’t been spotted anywhere else, according to the reports, this could very well be the  _ only _ one of its kind.” Lex replied. 

Bruce nodded, turning to the observation window looking into the room with their new specimen. The parasite was lying on the floor, curled in on itself, still drugged from the sedative Bruce had injected. Little by little, however, the creature was beginning to wake up, its limbs twitching and stretching as it woke. 

Once the creature’s eyes fully opened, it lifted its head from the floor, looking around curiously. It began to wander around the room, pressing its smooth dome against various spots on the four walls, before walking the length of the room several times, its ear nodes flicking back and forth silently. Even curiouser, it hadn’t made a single sound since waking. 

“It’s the quietest parasite I’ve ever observed.” Lex stated, making notes of the parasite’s behaviors while the duo watched through the bulletproof glass. 

“That’s true. And seeing any form of explorative behavior is a first. Usually, they just try to find the door, then attempt to bust it down.” Bruce replied. As the scientists spoke, the parasite walked silently back and forth across the room, before its right ear node raised and it froze. Its head swiveled to the right, its eyes locking directly on Lex and Bruce, through the tinted glass. 

The hair on the back of Bruce’s neck stood up, Lex swallowing thickly beside him. “Do you think it can  _ see _ us? The glass is tinted, so it couldn’t possibly-” Lex whispered, before Bruce raised a finger, silencing him. 

The parasite had turned entirely towards the observation window, eyes locked on Bruce, its hand reaching up to rest against the tinted glass. Carefully, Bruce reached forward and rested his own hand on the glass, forming the mirror image of the parasite’s own appendage. Instantly, the two scientists observed the parasite’s irises dilate to the size of marbles, its body relaxing miraculously fast. 

Lex looked to Bruce, observing the millionaire’s reaction. “Why is it so attached to  _ you _ ?” he asked. 

“I don’t know.” Bruce replied, lost in thought. From the other side of the glass, the parasite was staring him dead in the eye, seemingly unable to see him, while at the same time, knowing full well that he was there. 

“We’ll have to do more tests. Maybe there’s a receptor in its brain that triggers it to react docilly with you?” Lex reasoned, scribbling on his clipboard. 

Turning away from the observation window, Bruce looked to the scientist with newfound interest and excitement. “Let’s test a theory.” he stated. 

“What?” Lex asked, startled as Bruce removed his lab coat and headed towards the door to the containment cell. 

“I’m going to go in there, and see just  _ how _ docile it is. If it’s so connected with  _ me _ , then there must be a reason.” Bruce replied. 

“That’s against protocol. I can’t let you do that. What if-” Lex began before Bruce cut him off. 

“We can’t learn to live if we don’t break some rules. Do you trust me?” Bruce asked, looking at the scientist with eyes full of honesty. 

“I do.” Lex replied, swiping his keycard in the scanner.

The metallic reinforced door quickly slid open, Bruce entering with swift steps, before he was sealed inside the room. The parasite turned to face him as he approached, the Detective keeping his distance at about twenty feet from his target, its eyes carefully searching him. Taking a single step forward, Bruce paused when the parasite showed its pearly fangs, growling threateningly at the man. Instinctively reaching for his magnum, Bruce noted that the parasite only seemed to become more agitated when he withdrew it from its holster at his side. 

“Okay. No guns. I get it.” Bruce stated, carefully unstrapping the magnum from his side and tossing it to his right, hearing it clatter to the floor unceremoniously. Chancing another step, Bruce paused when the parasite growled again, eyes locked on the other side of his belt: where his combat knife sat. 

“Alright, no  _ weapons _ . Got it.” Bruce replied, slipping the knife from his belt and tossing it to rest beside his gun. Now that he was disarmed, the parasite seemed more relaxed, sniffing the air cautiously before its irises dilated once again, signalling its comformality in his presence. 

Bruce watched with interest as the parasitic symbiote retreated from the body in which it was inhabiting, folding backwards towards the host’s back before retreating fully into his skin, vanishing entirely from view. 

The host was a young man, maybe twenty, with bright blue eyes, thin cheeks, and short blonde hair, his skin pale and clammy-looking. He wore a pair of blue jeans, black running shoes, white socks, and a red hoodie, the hood slung over the top of his head. A metallic-looking muzzle was strapped to his face, blocking anything smaller than a tootsie roll from entering his mouth. He looked nervous and terrified at the same time, seemingly ready to bolt at any second. 

When Bruce said nothing, the youth bit his lip, tucking his skinny hands into his hoodie’s pockets. “Um, hello?” a quiet, nervous voice offered. 

Crossing his arms, Bruce nodded, raising an eyebrow. “Hi.” the Detective replied. 

“My name’s Barry, Barry Allen. What about you?” the youth asked meekly. 

“Bruce. Bruce Wayne.” Bruce replied. Bruce was very sure Lex was losing his mind right about now. 

“Where am I?” Barry asked, looking around the room. 

“You’re in a containment cell, in Lexcorp’s research branch.” Bruce replied. If Barry had any intent on leaving, he wouldn’t give the youth an exact location as to where they were. 

“Is this a lab?” Barry asked, eyes brightening slightly. 

“Kind of. The labs are upstairs.” Bruce replied. 

“Oh, okay.” Barry replied, leaning against the wall. 

The youth seemed shy, and intimidated by Bruce. “Why don’t you tell me where you’re from? I’m going to need some details to determine if I can trust you or not, since you just came out of a parasite’s body.” Bruce reasoned. 

“Oh, okay.” Barry replied, shrugging slightly from the demand. “I’m from Central City.” the youth replied. His breathing didn’t seem very restricted by the muzzle, but his voice sometimes came out a little muddled. 

“I figured you weren’t from around here, or at least, Gotham. Anyway, how did you end up like  _ this _ ?” Bruce asked, gesturing up and down Barry’s body. 

“I was working at the CCPD, as a CSI, and I got struck by lightning. I was put into a coma, and I woke up in some kind of military installment.” Barry replied. 

Bruce nodded, glad to have some medical records to work with. “Where was this installment?” Bruce asked. 

“It was in Central, I know that, because when I escaped, I was just outside of STAR Labs.” Barry replied. 

“Interesting place to emerge from. Why did you feel the need to escape?” Bruce asked. 

Barry shrank a little, his hands rubbing at his neck unconsciously. “They were testing something on people. It made them turn into monsters, and I am one of those monsters.” Barry replied. 

Eyes traveling to the area where Barry was rubbing, Bruce could make out scars symbolizing a thick chain that might’ve been wrapped around his neck, or a shackle, or collar made of metal, which had been driven into his skin. Not only that, but there were little scars on Barry’s wrists as well, like cut lines from a scalpel that healed over time. 

“Did they hurt you, Barry?” Bruce asked quietly, keeping his voice low as to not upset the youth. 

Barry whimpered, ghosting a hand across the muzzle still clamped to his face. “They injected me with things when I was first starting to wake up. A yellow fluid, right into my veins. Then they dumped me into a cage and left, while I writhed and screamed in pain. Whatever they injected into me burned my insides up, melted off my ears, made my teeth fall out. And then they finally came back. But, I wasn’t what they were expecting. I was weak, tiny, helpless. And the soldiers didn’t like that. They wanted dogs that would listen, beasts they could tame, creatures that would follow commands to a line. I wasn’t like that. They wanted me to kill people: men, women, children,  _ infants _ , and I refused. They dragged me away and starved me, cut me, lashed me, beat me, until I couldn’t move anymore. I was always forced to watch as the other subjects ate people, killed people, hunted people, and I was left screaming at them to stop. But they never did. The General who was running the whole operation came by to visit sometimes, and personally offered me beatings, lashings, and tried to strangle me. It got to the point where I...I  _ broke _ .” Barry sniffled, tears pricking in his blue eyes. 

Bruce sighed, looking down at his feet. “What happened after that?” he asked. 

“I lost my mind. I attacked anything and everything. I killed scientists, doctors, people, and the other creatures they were making. I didn’t leave a trace of any of those creations: I  _ ate _ them. I couldn’t let them get out and infect more people.” Barry whimpered, tears streaming down his cheeks. 

“Did any of those people get away?” Bruce asked. 

“The General. And some of his soldiers, I think. I couldn’t really think. I lost so much of my mind that I turned into the monster they were trying to make me. And I’m still that monster, to this day.” Barry sobbed, wiping his eyes with his sleeve. 

“Do you have any names we can check against our staff? Anyone who might still be working?” Bruce asked. 

Barry bit his lip, grinding his teeth. “Yeah. That General. I think his name was Elling.” Barry replied. 

“That’s not possible.” Lex stated as he entered the room. Clearly, he was tired of observing and wanted to interact with this new specimen. 

“Why not?” Bruce asked. 

“Because General Elling runs just about every military operation across the United States. He’s the supreme head of every military installment we’ve got, including the Citadels.” Lex explained. 

“You sound like you know him.” Barry guessed. 

“He operates out of this Citadel. This Citadel is basically his headquarters.” Bruce replied. 

Barry’s eyes went wide and he instantly choked on his breath, his inhalation of the cool air becoming rapid and unsteady. 

Bruce observed as the youth lost his balance, stumbling against the wall before sliding to the ground. “Barry, are you alright?” Bruce asked, kneeling down beside the red-clad youngster. 

Barry’s body was shaking as he hyperventilated, his hands clasping at the wall blindly as he panicked. “I can’t breathe.” he gasped, hand reaching towards his throat. 

In one quick movement, Bruce snatched Barry’s wrist, pulling the youth tight against him. Resting his chin atop Barry’s hooded head, Bruce essentially used his strength to keep Barry from squirming away. “Calm down. Take some deep breaths. Nothing is going to happen to you.” the Detective cooed, slowing his own heartbeat in time with his breathing. 

Slowly, Barry’s breathing returned to normal and he relaxed in Bruce’s grasp, more tears pooling from his eyes and soaking his shirt. “I’m sorry.” he whispered. 

“Don’t be, Barry. You’ve been through a lot. You need time to adjust. Let us take care of you, for the time being.” Lex replied, giving the youth a hopeful look. 

Curling into Bruce’s hold, Barry nodded, promptly passing out.

Lex nodded, sighing. “He’s so young. I kind of wish Elling hadn’t chosen him as a subject, you know?” Lex reasoned. 

“Me too, Lex. Me too.” Bruce replied. 


	5. Secrets

**Chapter 5: Secrets**

Once Barry was comfortably settled in a hospital bed, within the research branch, Bruce set to work on discovering more about the youth’s story, diving into hospital and research records from various scientists stationed around the area. 

“Anything yet?” Lex asked as he sat opposite Bruce, a cup of hot coffee in his hand. 

“Nothing substantial so far. His birth and medical records check out, so he exists. Central City didn’t have much on him, however, besides the death of his parents at age ten, and his adoption into the West household that same year.” Bruce replied. 

“What did the medical records state?” Lex asked. 

“He was put into a coma October 7, 2014 from a Direct Lightning Strike, and sent into the hospital with seizures, even when his heart had no rhythm. Supposedly, the electricity in the building cut out every time he had a seizure, and the doctors couldn’t determine why someone without a heart rhythm could even  _ have _ a seizure. After approximately nine months in the coma, his body was donated to STAR Labs for scientific research focused on the discovery of the cure.” Bruce explained. 

“How  _ can _ someone have a seizure without a heart rhythm? It’s impossible.” Lex reasoned, rubbing his temples. 

Bruce looked away from the screen for a moment, before rubbing his eyes. “I’ve been thinking for awhile now about the lightning factor. What if, since Barry was introduced to excessive energy before he was infected, that energy was absorbed into his body and excited his cells? Therefore, the injections of the Symbiosis virus wouldn’t have the ability to overwhelm his bloodstream, but instead fuse to it in order to bind with the intense cellular energy he exhibits?” Bruce guessed. 

Lex stood, pacing back and forth, his eyes on the floor. “It’s much more plausible than anything else I’ve been thinking of. If the electricity was absorbed directly into his bloodstream, and the Symbiosis virus enters the bloodstream, thinking it can overwhelm Barry’s blood and invade his body using its own form of a replication system, but there’s too much energy to handle, then Barry’s blood would’ve effectively fused with the Symbiosis virus itself, creating a blood-based Symbiosis virus, rather than salivary-based!” Lex exclaimed excitedly. 

Bruce lifted a hand, trying to calm the scientist. “So, in turn, his cellular energy would’ve overridden the structure of the virus, rewriting it to his humanic code, and forced the virus to act dormant in his system?” Bruce asked. 

Lex nodded, giddily hopping from foot to foot. “Yes, indeed! This would mean that he carries the vaccine we need!” Lex replied, clapping his hands. 

“Until we make sure, we can’t share this information with anyone. Is that clear, Lex? This information can’t get out, because there are people out there who want to hurt him, and we can’t let that happen, if he’s our only sample of the vaccine.” Bruce reasoned. 

Lex nodded, placing his hands in his pockets. “What’re we going to do about Elling? If Barry says he is who he really is, then we’ve got no choice but to not trust him.” Lex reasoned. 

“True. We’ve handled people like Elling before, but we can confront him on it once we get some evidence. We can’t just start making accusations on blind words, Lex.” Bruce replied. 

“I’ll see about getting paper evidence. If you want to monitor Barry, I’ll start getting the research done regarding his scans and such.” Lex offered. 

“We need to know what really made him. Get to it as soon as possible. I’ll be right behind you.” Bruce promised. 

As Bruce stood up, he stretched himself before heading into Barry’s room, where the youth was curled comfortably onto one of the hospital beds. The metallic muzzle on his face was pressing against his nose at a strange angle, and Bruce could clearly hear the youth’s breathing labored and heavy against the metal. 

“Let’s see about getting that off of you.” Bruce reasoned, pulling a small toolkit out of his pocket. The muzzle was strapped to Barry’s head using a series of metallic bands that extended over the top of his head and screwed together. Carefully tilting the youth’s head to the side, Bruce silently undid the screws, putting them on a nearby table in case he needed them later. With the screws undone, the straps loosened over Barry’s head, stiff over his ears and jawline. Quietly, Bruce pulled on the straps, hearing Barry whimper in protest. Lifting the youth’s jaw, Bruce noted that even with the straps off his head, the metallic muzzle was still swollen to his skin. 

‘Great. This is going to be difficult.’ Bruce thought, letting the metallic straps hang loose over Barry’s ears. There were large red marks where they’d been, signalling that Barry’s skin had swelled significantly around them in the time it’d been placed on his face. Taking hold of the portion of the muzzle that was attached to Barry’s jaw, Bruce put a little pressure on it, hearing it pop from the skin. 

Whimpering, Barry’s hand ghosted towards his face, before Bruce caught his wrist. Slowly and carefully Bruce directed Barry’s hand to rest against his chest, where his breath had moreso evened out and wasn’t as labored anymore. 

With one quick yank, Bruce popped the muzzle off Barry’s face, catching sight of the immense bruising around the youth’s jawline while he set the muzzle aside on the table. Ghosting a hand over the bruises, Bruce flinched as Barry’s hand wrapped around his wrist, and his cheek came to rest cupped in his palm. After a few seconds, Barry released his palm, but Bruce didn’t withdraw his touch from the youth’s fair skin. 

Instead, Bruce gently rubbed his thumb against Barry’s cheek, hearing a quiet purring leaving the youth’s lips in return. ‘He’s kind of  _ cute _ .’ Bruce caught himself thinking, before he quickly shook the thoughts out of his head. Lex walked in and smiled softly at the Detective’s fondness of Barry, before he whispered into Bruce’s ear. 

“I’m going to do my scans now. You might want to step back from the bed.” Lex whispered. 

Nodding, Bruce took several steps back from Barry’s bed, hearing the sound of the x-rays being taken. As Lex went to print the x-rays, Bruce jolted at the sound of the alarms beginning to blare. 

Dialing Lex using the com system, Bruce quickly heard the scientist’s voice become muddled, as if he was in a crowd. “Lex, what’s going on?” Bruce asked. 

“Supposedly, some of the subjects got out of containment. They’re locking down the building, and I’m stuck in the testing branch.” Lex replied. 

Bruce was scanning through the cameras, trying to find any instance of the escaped subjects, when he found a group of parasites attacking scientists on their way to the research branch. “I found them on the cameras.” Bruce stated. 

“Direct us away from there, or lock down the doors! We can’t let them escape!” Lex shouted over the noise in his com. 

Bruce looked back to the cameras, his eyes glazing over the cameras facing the offices. Elling seemed to be exiting an office, a scientist’s office, which was barely within range of the camera. Marking the location with a single image, Bruce turned his attention back to assisting Lex. He nearly jolted when he felt Barry’s hand on his shoulder. 

“Let me help.” Barry stated, his voice soft and wispy. 

“No, you’d get yourself discovered, and quite possibly caught, by Elling. We can’t have you revealing yourself, yet.” Bruce snapped back. 

“I can hunt them,  _ kill _ them. No one would know.” Barry insisted. 

Bruce sighed, rubbing his temples. “Lex, what’s the situation down there?” he asked through the com. 

“They’re coming this way, and the dumbass security have blocked the exits! They’re not letting anyone out!” Lex cried back, nearly deafening the Detective. 

Bruce looked to Barry, who bit his lip, his jaw having healed in record time. “Don’t make too much of a mess.” Bruce stated. 

Nodding, Barry turned away, his version of the Symbiosis virus recoating his body in its crimson parasite skin. The youth vanished in a burst of cold air, blowing Bruce’s hair slightly. “I’d better follow him.” Bruce thought aloud, slipping out of the lab and dashing down the hall. 

Down in the testing branch, bloodied bodies created a path of destruction from whence the parasites traveled, their fangs dripping with the blood of their victims. As they headed towards the research branch, drawn by the scent of the human populace, the scientists and doctors huddled against the security doors, where the armed guards refused to let them pass. “We don’t know which of you was bitten! We can’t let you pass!” one of the guards cried, cocking his AK47. 

“You can’t just leave us all here to die! We’re looking for the cure, dammit!” a scientist cried, upset, slamming her fist against the security doors. Thankfully, the doors were made of bulletproof plexiglass, strong enough to survive a tank blast. 

The scientists held their breath as three parasites rounded the corner, their mouths dripping with blood, their fangs poised to attack. They huddled together in terror as the creatures stalked closer, cutting off their prey’s exits, scanning to find the easiest to pick off. 

A scream rang out. It wasn’t a human scream, and it visibly made both the humans and the parasites flinch with the sharpness. Lex jerked as a red blur came flying around the corner and slammed into all three of the parasites, knocking them to the ground. 

As the first began to rise to its feet, enraged, its eyes lazily scanned around for its attacker, before it settled on a red parasite, crouched and poised to attack once more. Growling animalistically at each other, the two parasites faced off, the red armed with excessive speed and sharp fangs, and the yellow armed with sharp fangs, claws, and predator’s intent. 

Launching forward, the first parasite was quickly felled by a swift kick to the side of its head, the other two launching into two flanking attacks, in an attempt to attack the red parasite. Hissing, the red parasite punched the one on its left aside, while wrapping a hand around the right one’s throat, slamming it into the ground. 

Lex flinched, his stomach flipping nervously, as the red parasite’s fangs drove into its prey’s throat, withdrawing with a mouthful of flesh as it sprayed blood everywhere. 

The parasite quickly threw its first kill aside and grabbed the second parasite by the foot, swinging it around before slamming its head into the wall, splattering its brains against the white surface. 

The third parasite, slightly smaller than the others, shrieked in warning, crouching low as it circled the red parasite. Launching forward with incredible speed, it was no match for the red parasite’s own agility as its arm was snatched and effectively bit off, thrown aside, before its throat was torn out with the red parasite’s own teeth. The hallway effectively covered in blood and bodies, the scientists huddled at the end stared at the red parasite in horror, mouths open in shock. 

Bruce rounded the corner, having heard the noise and seen the blood spatter, to find the red parasite taking several threatening steps closer to the scientists at the end of the hall. Biting his lip, he held out his hand, palm facing upwards. “Come!” he called. 

The red parasite’s head whipped towards him, a look of confusion on its face. ‘Come on, Barry. Understand what I’m trying to tell you.’ Bruce silently prayed, grinding his teeth. Cautiously, the red parasite walked back towards the Detective, resting its chin in the palm of Bruce’s hand. 

“There we go. Good.” Bruce smiled, patting the parasite on the head with his other hand. He could see the gears grinding in Lex’s brain, just by seeing the expression on the scientist’s face, but only smiled to confirm the message he was trying to convey. 

“Don’t worry, folks. This is Subject F-1. He’s a new specimen Lex and I have been working on.” Bruce smiled. He hoped his charming smile would be enough to convince the other scientists of his lie. He could see the embarrassment building in Barry’s features, and hoped the little parasite wouldn’t do anything foolish. 

“That’s quite an accomplishment, Dr. Luthor. I commend your efforts, especially working with someone such as Mr. Wayne.” a scientist spoke up. 

Lex let out the breath he didn’t know he was holding. “Th-thank you, Dr. Ramsey. I’m glad he was put into action so quickly.” Lex replied, nervously. 

One of the scientists took a series of steps forward, working her way around the corpses littering the hallway, so she could stand next to Barry. “May I?” she asked, gesturing to Barry’s smooth dome. 

Bruce looked to Barry with a warning glance, concern-filled, but was met with an annoyed glare from the parasite. Barry clearly didn’t want to blow their cover, but he didn’t seem too willing to become a subject of the scientist’s interest. “Of course. He’s very docile.” Bruce smiled. 

He nearly laughed as the scientist took hold of Barry’s cheeks, giving them a big squeeze. “What a cutie you are! You’re so adorable!” the scientist grinned happily. 

“Dr. Snow, I recommend we return him to the testing branch, while we have the time.” Lex interjected, blushing slightly. 

“Oh, of course, Dr. Luthor. I’m so sorry.” Dr. Snow apologized, smiling softly at Barry. 

“It’s not a problem, Dr. Snow. If you want to, feel free to come by and see him again. He loves company.” Bruce smiled happily. 

The woman smiled, turning to look sheepishly back at the mess of blood and bodies she’d stepped through. “I’ll get someone to clean this up, Dr. Luthor. You go on ahead.” she offered. 

Barry pouted with the lack of attention, looking to the young woman longingly. Bruce caught the look, sighing to himself. ‘I need to make sure to get him into more social situations.’ he thought. 

“Thank you, Dr. Snow. Mr. Wayne, shall we get him back to the testing branch?” Lex asked, the crowd dispersing behind him into the health branch. 

Bruce and Barry nodded in unison, turning and walking back down the connector hallway to the testing branch’s labs. 


	6. Love

**Chapter 6: Love**

Bruce carefully eased open the lab door once they approached the testing branch’s labs, ensuring that anyone inside the labs wouldn’t hear them approach. 

“Is anyone in there?” Lex asked quietly, nervousness in his tone. 

Bruce was silent, listening. There were no footsteps, voices, or noises of any kind coming from the lab. “It seems empty.” Bruce replied, opening the door. 

As the trio entered the lab, Barry shed his virus-form, shuddering as the symbiote-like substance slithered back into his body. There was a spattering of blood across his lips, which quickly drew Bruce’s attention. 

“Here.” Bruce said, pulling a tissue from a nearby box and reaching towards Barry’s face. Instantly, the parasite jerked backward, alarmed by his presence. 

“It’s okay, Barry. I’m just wiping your mouth. You’ve got blood on your lips.” Bruce explained, his voice soft and comforting. ‘Was he startled by my approach?’ Bruce thought, Barry turning towards him. Carefully, Bruce took hold of Barry’s chin, holding his head still while he gently wiped the offending liquid from the parasite’s mouth. 

“Th-thank you, Mr. Wayne.” Barry stated shyly, a soft blush coming to his face. 

“It’s nothing, Barry. Call me Bruce. We’re on a first name basis.” Bruce smirked. 

“So, what are we going to do about this? The others with level five clearance clearly know Barry exists now. There’s bound to be word spread around about him.” Lex reasoned. 

“We don’t have much of a choice other than to hide him from the public.” Bruce replied. 

Barry was silent, listening to the “adults” talking. He seemed to be pondering his own options, foot bouncing nervously against the floor while he was deep in thought. 

“We could hide him in the labs.” Lex offered. 

“The other doctors are more likely to question our interactions with him then, and Elling may come around poking sticks at bears, trying to get more information.” Bruce replied. 

“What if we put me under “Subject Protection”? That way, Elling wouldn’t have the ability to touch me, even if I’m alone. I could stick with Mr. Wayne in the meantime, as a scientific instrument of study, requiring protection.” Barry reasoned. 

Lex and Bruce were silent for a moment, pondering the offer. “Sounds good to me.” Lex replied. 

“There’s only one problem: how would other people know to avoid you, as a subject?” Bruce asked. 

Lex turned to his lab desk and rummaged around in a drawer, pulling out a subject collar, usually used for parasites. “He could wear this.” the scientist offered. 

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Bruce sighed, facepalming. 

“Is it effective?” Barry asked, carefully taking the collar from the scientist and giving it an examination. 

“In the field, yeah. In the containment areas, not so much. It’ll keep the populous away from you, that’s for sure. But other scientists are more likely to stop and ask you questions about your treatment.” Lex replied. 

“The reward  _ is _ greater than the risk, in this case. I’ll do it.” Barry agreed, slipping the collar around his neck and clicking it into place. The collar was secured by a magnet attachment, which meant it was very unlikely to remove itself from the wearer’s body without the help of a special desensitization magnet. 

“We can house you in my Leaguer room for now, until we have a better place to put you.” Bruce offered, Barry looking to him with a strange expression. 

“Good. That’s figured out. In the meantime, while you get him settled, I’ll keep looking for the cure vaccine.” Lex confirmed, turning towards one of the various lab tables. He pulled a microscope from underneath the table, in a cabinet, switching it on. 

“Should I keep walking around as... _ this _ ?” Barry asked, gesturing to his humanlike appearance. 

“That’ll be best, yes. We wouldn’t want to be carting you around as a parasite, getting stopped by every new switch of a patrol.” Lex replied. 

“Okay. Well, do you want to show me around, Mr. Wayne?” Barry asked, looking to the Detective expectantly. 

“Of course, Barry. Follow me. We’ll start by getting you settled in the Hall of Justice.” Bruce replied. 

Barry followed cautiously behind Bruce as they traversed the Citadel, reaching the Hall of Justice in just under ten minutes. Upon arrival, Bruce escorted Barry to his room, where the youth proceeded to gaze at the large bed with wide eyes. “This is where you  _ sleep _ ?” Barry asked, voice displaying his shock. 

“Of course. This is my room. It’s more of a suite, but it’s good enough for two, if I end up with a roommate.” Bruce replied, slipping his shoes off. 

As he sat on a nearby chair, unstrapping his shoes, he watched in awe as Barry’s hand grazed over the cool sheets, fingers tentatively touching the fabrics as he examined them. “They’re so nice.” Barry stated, admiring the fabrics. 

“It’s a bed, Barry. It’s old, but still good. Do you like it?” Bruce asked, stretching. 

“Y-yeah.” Barry replied softly. 

“Good. You’ll probably like it more when you’re sleeping in it.” Bruce added. 

A blush shot across Barry’s face with Bruce’s comment, nearly making the Detective laugh. “A-are you serious, Mr. Wayne?” Barry asked shyly. 

“Yes, Barry. It’s more than large enough for the both of us.” Bruce smiled innocently. 

Barry looked down at his hands, curling them against his chest. “It’s been more than two years since I slept in a proper bed. I’m sure I’ll like it.” the youth smiled. 

“Don’t worry about it, Barry. Now, should we get something to eat, then clean up, or the other way around?” Bruce asked. 

Barry looked down at himself, raising an eyebrow. “Do I look bad?” he asked. 

Bruce turned him towards the closet, opening the door to reveal a full length mirror. Upon seeing his reflection, Barry jolted. He was covered in dirt, blood, and other substances not of his own origin. “May I take a shower, Mr. Wayne?” Barry asked shyly. 

“Of course, Barry. Go on and get in. I’ll go stop by the laundry and grab you some fresh clothes, so we can wash what you’re wearing.” Bruce explained. 

Barry nodded, heading into the bathroom without another thought. Just as he closed the door, Bruce’s com rang. “This is Mr. Wayne.” he answered. 

“Oh, good. I was worried I wouldn’t be able to reach you.” Lex’s voice stated. 

“What’s up, Dr. Luthor?” Bruce asked. 

“We’ve got a problem. Someone broke into my office and ransacked the place. Most of my files were scattered, but everything related to the test subjects was taken.” Lex reported. 

“Is anything not reprintable?” Bruce asked. 

“Everything’s been backed up on a drive, but I’m worried that whoever stole the files might’ve found what they were looking for.” Lex replied. 

“Which would’ve been something related to the test subjects. Specifically…?” Bruce guessed. 

“Information related to Barry. His medical reports, scans. Everything we did to him while he was sleeping.” Lex explained. 

“As far as I know, all you did while he was resting was scan him, and do blood draws.” Bruce replied. 

“That information showed just how  _ evolved _ his strain of the virus is. He’s stronger, faster, smarter, because he still has access to his human host. What I’m trying to say is-” Lex began before Bruce cut him off. 

“His strain of the virus enhanced his human body, rather than destroyed it, am I right?” Bruce finished. 

“Yes! Much more than anything I’ve ever seen in a parasite’s body. The major of his blood is oxygenated, as well as of the white cell variety. Not only that, his bones are eighty percent stronger than anything I’ve seen, even in a human of average height and weight. He’s got an excess of calcium in his body, and his heart rhythm is impossibly fast.” Lex explained. 

“ _ How _ fast?” Bruce asked curiously. 

“The average human’s BPM is sixty to one hundred. His is two thousand four hundred BPM.” Lex replied. 

“Jesus, Lex. Anything else I’d need to know?” Bruce asked. 

“When we did the scans, he came up categorized as gender O, or omega. It’s likely that the reason he’s so attached to you is because he finds you attractive, both as a suitable mate, and compatible for his breed.” Lex replied. 

“Thanks. He’s in the shower now, getting cleaned up. I’m going to take him to get something to eat after this, so I’ll be out of contact for a bit.” Bruce replied. 

“Understood. I’ll see if I can figure out who went through my files.” Lex replied. 

“Got it. See you later.” Bruce answered, hanging up. 

He quickly set about heading to the laundry area, gathering Barry some spare clothes they always had in excess locked away in the lost and found. Everything was clean, which was a bonus, and what Bruce had selected seemed like it would fit the very skinny teen. As he returned to his room, he found the bathroom door open, Barry standing in front of the mirror toweling his blonde hair. His skin had turned to a nearly milk-white color, the dirt having been cleansed from its surface. 

Bruce put the fresh clothes down on the bed and settled himself down with a book, watching Barry glance at the clothes shyly. “Are these the clothes you said you’d get for me?” he asked nervously. 

“Yeah. Go and put some of them on. Tell me if anything doesn’t fit.” Bruce replied. Barry nodded and returned to the bathroom, closing the door. In less than a minute, the door opened again, and Bruce was left staring at Barry’s adorable little form. 

“H-how do I look, Mr. Wayne?” the youth asked. He was now wearing a red plaid button up, clean skinny jeans, black high-top sneakers, and his hair was combed to the side. 

“You look great.” Bruce replied. It was hard for him to tear his eyes away from the youth, actually, now that he admitted it. 

“Thank you, Mr. Wayne. Should we go eat now, then, before it gets too late?” Barry asked. 

Bruce checked his watch. It was later than he’d expected. “Yeah. Let’s go.” he replied, rising to his feet. Barry followed him out the door and down the hall, where they entered a room full of different people, all seemingly disguised as civilians. None of them looked like true civilians, however, except Diana, Clark, Hal, and Jon. Bruce and Barry gathered themselves a tray and moved to join the small group at a table, where all eyes instantly turned to Barry. 

“Heya, newbie. Welcome to the group. I’m Hal.” Hal greeted, shaking Barry’s hand. 

“Pleasure to meet you, Hal. I’m Barry.” Barry replied, shaking the man’s hand meekly. 

“Welcome, Bartholomew.” Jon greeted. 

“How did you know my full first name?” Barry asked. 

“He can read minds. He’s actually a Martian. All these people are actually superheroes in disguise, Barry.” Bruce replied. 

Barry’s eyes went wide. “You’re joking.” he stated. 

“Nope. Green Lantern at your service, Barry.” Hal smiled, patting the youth on the shoulder. 

“I’m Clark, this is Diana, and that’s Jon. You already know Bruce.” Clark greeted, smiling charmingly. 

“This is an interesting experience. I didn’t think you’d all be sitting around as civilians.” Barry replied. 

“We’re usually out on the job, so you don’t see much of us, unless it’s construction.” Diana replied. 

“I’ve seen Mr. Hal around.” Barry replied. 

“Where?” Bruce asked. 

“Out around Central. I’ve seen him take out loads of parasites.” Barry replied. Hal glowed at the praise. 

“Thanks, Barry. I appreciate it.” Hal grinned. 

“So, have you caught Bruce’s attention by affection’s means?” Jon asked. 

Bruce almost choked on his drink, but quickly recovered. “He’s under my protection right now, Jon.” he replied instead. 

“Aw. You two would’ve been such a cute couple.” Diana pouted. 

Clark chuckled. “Still trying to set him up with someone?” he asked. 

“He  _ needs _ someone.” Diana winked back. 

Bruce glanced at Barry, spotting the blush growing on his cheeks. “He’s adorable, but I can’t put my needs before the needs of the people. We made a promise, and I intend to keep that promise, even if I die single.” Bruce smirked. 

Hal howled with laughter, Clark chuckled, Jon smiled happily, and Diana smirked wickedly at the Detective. 

After dinner, Bruce and Barry returned to their room and settled down for bed. Barry was tucked in on his side of the large bed, while Bruce was silently reading a book. “You called me adorable.” Barry suddenly said. 

Bruce looked over at him, smirking. “You  _ are _ . I wouldn’t lie about you.” he replied. 

“Do you need me?” Barry asked quietly. 

“We all do, Barry. You’re very important to our survival.” Bruce replied. 

There was silence for a few minutes. “I didn’t mean it like that.” Barry answered. 

“What did you mean?” Bruce asked. 

Barry rolled over so he was lying against Bruce, both covered by the comforter. His blue eyes were searching Bruce’s face. “You said you wouldn’t put  _ your _ needs before the needs of the people. I need to belong to someone. You said you’d put the needs of the people before your own. But, when you said you had needs, you were talking about me. That meant  _ you _ needed  _ me _ .” Barry replied. 

Bruce bit his lip, setting his book down. “What if I do  _ need _ you, Barry?” he asked back. 

Barry was silent for a moment. “Do you  _ want _ me?” he asked. 

Bruce swallowed thickly. ‘I do.’ he thought. His stomach clenched. He didn’t want to miss the chance. Barry started to look away, seemingly disappointed. “I  _ want _ you.  _ I _ want  _ you _ .” Bruce replied softly, lost in the words. 

Barry looked at him, their eyes locking, wills battling for dominance. Bruce smiled softly, taking Barry by his waist and lifting the youth towards him, gently bringing the youth’s lips against his own. 

Barry moaned into the kiss, smiling softly as Bruce’s hands traveled to cup his jaw. As they broke to breathe, Barry licked his lips, a lustful expression on his face. “You-you kiss nicely, Mr. Wayne.” he stated. 

Bruce smirked. “Thanks.” Bruce replied. Bruce let his hands travel down to squeeze Barry’s rear, the youth shuddering against him. He could feel the bulge in his briefs growing tight against him, pressing against Barry’s stomach. To his surprise, Barry ground against him, causing the Detective to nearly choke on the pleasure. 

Flipping Barry to lie against the bed, Bruce ran his hands down Barry’s sides, the youth shuddering once again. 

The Detective mouthed along Barry’s shoulders and throat, drawing moan after moan from him in reply. Biting down suddenly on Barry’s shoulder, the moan that left Barry’s mouth almost made Bruce’s heart stop in excitement. 

“ _ Bruce! _ ” Barry whimpered, cheeks flushed red with the pleasure of Bruce’s gentle touches. 

“Oh, you liked  _ that. _ ” Bruce smirked. He would have to draw  _ much _ more of his name from Barry’s pink lips.


	7. Pain

**Chapter 7: Pain**

Bruce awoke to the subtle light of the sun breaking through the curtains of his window, bleeding across his eyes. Opening them, he sighed when he realized his arms were still full of Barry. The tiny parasite had curled tight against him, his cheek pressing smoothly against the Detective’s broad chest. 

Bruce lifted his watch to his eyes, peeking at the digital time. ‘Eight. Late enough to wake up.’ he thought. About to sit up and shift out of the comforter, he noticed a large discolored spot on the youth’s left shoulder, once the comforter slid out of the way. The spot was a large bruise, in the shape of a bite mark, which would’ve outlined  _ his _ canines and jaw form perfectly. 

‘Shit. Did I do that?’ Bruce thought, wincing at the pure largeness of the bruise. Gently grazing a hand over the bruise, Bruce watched as Barry merely shuddered against him, ignoring whatever pain it would’ve caused. 

‘That looks painful as hell. I should make a note to treat that.’ the Detective thought. With the touches, Barry’s eyes slowly fluttered open, lazily sliding to focus on Bruce. 

“Hi.” he said softly.

“Morning.” Bruce replied. 

Barry yawned loudly, smiling. “Good morning. How did you sleep?” he asked. 

Bruce considered for a moment. “It was probably the best sleep I’ve had since this nightmare began.” he replied. 

Barry smiled again, sitting up against him. “Should we get dressed? Lex’s is probably looking for us.” he suggested. 

“Yeah. It’d be good to get something to eat, as well.” Bruce replied. Steadily, the two gathered themselves fresh clothes, showered, dressed, and headed out for the dining hall. 

Clark and Diana had already gathered themselves something to eat and were sitting together at a table, of which Barry and Bruce joined. 

“You look well-rested.” Clark complemented, gesturing to Bruce. 

“Yeah, certainly the most rested I’ve seen in a while.” Diana replied. 

“It was a soothing night.” Bruce replied. He didn’t glance at Barry, for fear that his gesture may be taken as an indication of their night of festivities. 

“It was nice. The room was cool, and quiet.” Barry added, stretching once again. 

“Good. It’s always nice to rest up before another day. You regenerate and such, and then mentally prepare yourself for what’s to come. You never know what might be around the corner.” Clark replied. 

“Any news from Lex?” Diana asked. 

“Not of late. We’re going to stop by later and see what he’s up to, though.” Bruce replied. 

After breakfast, Bruce and Barry stashed their trays and headed to Lexcorp, where Lex would be waiting. Using his keycard, Bruce walked Barry up to Lex’s office, where they found no signs of the scientist. “Maybe he’s down in the labs?” Barry guessed. 

“Let me call him.” Bruce replied, dialing Lex on the com link. 

There was no answer the first two times, and the second, there was silence, then static. “I think something may be wrong with the coms systems.” Bruce replied. 

“That’s not good. Do you want to try him again?” Barry asked, concerned. 

Bruce nodded, dialing Lex’s lab number. The scientist picked up, rushed and breathless. “Thank god!” he cried. 

“Lex, what’s going on?” Bruce asked. 

“Elling is in the lab, shoving my staff around. He wants to know about Barry, and the progress on the cure. He’s not leaving, even with the threat of security escorting him out.” Lex replied. There was a crash on the line, and a scream. “Please, can you come and deal with him?” Lex whispered. 

“I’ll be there in a minute.” Bruce replied, hanging up. Bruce looked to Barry, who only nodded. 

“Which lab? And what floor?” Barry asked, taking Bruce by the arm. 

“Lab eight, floor six.” Bruce replied. 

In the blink of an eye, they were passing from hallway to hallway in milliseconds, arriving with a quiet squeak outside the selected labs. Upon the sudden stop, Bruce held his urge to prevent himself from throwing up. 

“Sorry, that happens sometimes.” Barry apologized. 

“Don’t worry about it, Barry. How many are in there? Scientists and soldiers?” Bruce asked. Barry peeked his head around the corner, spying into the labs. “Four scientists, seven soldiers.” he replied. 

“Where’s Lex?” Bruce asked. 

Barry was silent, listening. “Far back, behind the left lab table.” he replied.

“Got it, thanks. Wait here, until I call you.” Bruce ordered. 

“But, what about you? You can’t dodge bullets, and you can’t fight all of them at once.” Barry whispered. 

Bruce took Barry’s ears in his hands, kissing the top of the youth’s head. “Trust me.” he promised. Barry nodded, tucking himself away as Bruce stepped out into the room. 

He was dressed in a lab coat, as Bruce Wayne, his “Head Manager” ID in his pocket, and a magnum tucked into either side of his belt. A combat knife was also strung to a holster inside his jacket, in preparation for combat. 

“Gentlemen, something wrong?” he asked, stepping out of the doorway. 

All heads turned toward him as he walked in, seemingly uninterested in the conflict. “What’s going on here?” he demanded again, tapping his foot impatiently. 

Elling composed himself, his look of rage melting away to reveal professional composure, just as many trained militia men would know how to portray. “Ah, Mr. Wayne. We were in the middle of a dispute, Lex and I.” he explained. 

“About?” Bruce asked. 

“Other countries, specifically Russia, Germany, and China, are wondering how much longer it will take for the cure to be developed. They’re making threats on us, in hopes that we’ll put our cure research to the forefront of our efforts, in order to distribute it and end this virus deal once and for all.” Elling explained. 

Bruce sighed, rubbing his temples. “Hasn’t Dr. Luthor told you that science takes time? Progress, specifically, takes a trial-and-error method. We can’t just spit out the cure or a vaccine, and pretend that it’ll work one hundred percent of the time.” Bruce argued. 

Elling crossed his arms. He was becoming defensive. “I suggest you send away your staff, Dr. Luthor. This is a private matter that needs to be discussed.” Elling suggested. He was being insistent. 

Lex nodded, gesturing for his staff to abandon their equipment. “I’ll dial you all and let you know when it’s alright to return. Private matters are private, after all.” Lex agreed. Quickly, the four scientists edged out of the room, vanishing down the hall, the door closing behind them. 

“Alright, Dr. Luthor, and Mr. Wayne. We’ve got an issue. I’ve currently learned that you’ve stumbled into a situation yourself, surrounding a parasite. This parasite seems to carry a unique version of the virus that acts like a cure, and you’ve been in contact with this parasite for a series of days. I want to know where this parasite is, how it’s being contained, and what’s being done about the cure.” Elling demanded. 

“Why are you so interested in this project?” Lex asked. 

“I’m the head of military operations in this country. It’s my job to be interested.” Elling snapped back. 

Bruce looked to Lex, sighing again. “He doesn’t need to be contained. He’s very docile, and protective of humans, so we don’t entirely need him to be contained.” Bruce answered. 

“It’s protocol that every parasite within this Citadel is to be contained. Call it, or we’ll shoot it on sight.” Elling demanded. 

“He’s not a dog, General. He’s here to help, and we’ll be  _ damned _ if you try to kill him.” Lex snapped. 

“I’ll kill who I want, thank you. I need to see this parasite, anyway, just to make sure it is what you say it is.” Elling growled, annoyed. 

Bruce ground his teeth. Placing two fingers in his mouth, he whistled sharply. On command, a red blur entered the room, taking up a position behind him. He hoped that Barry had heard everything. 

Peeking over the Detective’s shoulder, Barry’s eyes went wide when he took in the look of the General. “That’s him.” he whispered into Bruce’s ear. 

“The General who was overseeing the operation on you?” Bruce whispered back. 

“Y-yeah.” Barry replied quietly. 

Elling’s eyes were carefully scanning Barry up and down, eyeing the youth curiously. After a moment of staring blankly at each other, Elling’s eyes went wide and he drew his firearm: a 1911 pistol. “You!” he exclaimed, firing a single shot towards Barry. 

Bruce watched in awe as Barry’s hand flashed across his face, catching the bullet in mere seconds. Barry growled at the General, grinding his teeth. “You’ve seen him, now  _ leave _ .” Bruce snapped. 

“Not quite. We have unfinished business, him and I.” the General smirked. He took a step forward, of which Barry shrank further behind Bruce. 

“Ah, you’re still scared of me, ain’t you?” the General teased, sending Barry a deadly smile. 

Barry whimpered behind Bruce, his face displaying his terror. 

“He shared what you did to him. He told me everything: the lashings, the beatings, the abuse. How dare you. How  _ dare _ you do that to someone like  _ him _ .” Bruce hissed, angrily. 

“Really? You’re going to protect a useless, weak, shrimp like him? He’s a parasite, for god’s sake! He doesn’t deserve love, or affection. He’s a beast, a monster that only needs to be tamed.” Elling growled. 

Barry stepped out from behind Bruce, grabbing Elling by the neck. “ _ You _ made me a parasite!  _ You _ made me this way!  _ You _ had me injected,  _ you _ had me beat, and  _ you _ left me screaming for help, and denied me my  _ life _ !  _ You _ don’t deserve your life, because  _ you _ took  _ mine _ away from me!” Barry screeched angrily. 

Elling only smirked wider. It didn’t seem like Barry’s grip on the man’s neck was doing much. “You weren’t doing much for us anyway. It was best to dispose of you.” he grinned. 

Bruce ground his teeth, gently pushing Barry behind him. “Don’t you  _ ever _ touch him again. Lest you want to be killed, on sight.” Bruce threatened. 

“Oh, don’t worry. I’ve already got what I wanted from him.” Elling smirked. Bruce watched the man slowly leave the lab, taking his soldiers with him. Once he was gone, Lex let out a deep breath, nearly gasping in the process.

“Jesus, he’s frightening. How you managed to withstand him, I have no idea.” the scientist sighed. 

“I want to  _ kill _ him.” Barry growled quietly behind Bruce. 

“You’re still human, Barry. You have that control. Don’t lose it over someone like him.” Bruce advised. 

Barry sucked in a deep breath, nodding. “Okay, yeah, sorry.” he agreed, scratching the back of his neck. 

“What did you discover, in the meantime, Lex?” Bruce asked, turning to the scientist. 

“He carries the vaccine we need, which is good. And I’ve got a team down in the research branch working on synthesizing it.” Lex replied. 

“So, you’ve got the cure, now?” Barry asked. 

“We’re working on it, yes, but it’ll need to be tested in the field.” Lex replied. 

Barry looked to Bruce, a smile on his face. “We did it.” he grinned. 


	8. Loss

**Chapter 8: Loss**

As soon as the test vaccine was created, Lex handed it to Bruce, in the form of a grenade, armed in a gas form. “Find a group of them, and toss it at them. They’re going to be paralyzed for a while, while the virus exits their system, which will prevent them from giving chase, should you run into trouble.” Lex explained. 

“Got it. Let’s hope this goes well.” Bruce replied. 

“Do you want me to go, too?” Barry asked. 

“Yeah, it might be nice for you to go for a run.” Bruce agreed. 

Together, they headed to the hangar, where Hal was prepping a scouting crew. “What’s going on, Bruce?” he asked as the Detective approached. 

“We’re heading out to test a vaccine.” Bruce replied. 

Hal’s eyes lit up. “You’re serious? Two years into this mess, and we’ve got a vaccine?” he squeaked excitedly. 

“It’s just a test vaccine, Hal. Don’t get too excited.” Barry added, smiling grandly at the Green Lantern. 

“Alright, alright. Just let me know how it goes, alright?” Hal asked, Barry nodding. 

Bruce set the plane on autopilot to the center of the business plaza in Gotham City, far enough away where they’d outfly any pesky parasites trying to take down the plane from the ground. As the plane alighted down, Bruce and Barry quickly stepped out, Bruce armed with the Vaccine Grenades. “Alright, let’s make some noise.” Bruce nodded, slipping a whistle from his belt and holding it to his mouth. He blew into it with much force, flinching at the sharpness of the sound.

Within seconds, parasites began to pop up from all around them, forming a predatory circle around the Detective and the red parasite. 

“Here we go.” Bruce stated, pulling the pin on the first grenade. He tossed the small device into the area in front of him, the wind blowing towards him, which would blow the gas around him in a wide circle. 

As the gas broke free of the device, a cloud of white smoke engulfed the area, blinding the Detective slightly. The smoke blew about, and soon, Bruce found the first of the vaccine’s victims. 

They were lying on the ground, entirely human, showing no signs of the virus in their bodies. They were coughing hard, clearing the virus from their lungs as the others collapsed to the ground, their yellow parasite skin melting away to reveal their human forms. 

“It’s working!” Bruce called to Barry excitedly. 

He heard a confirmation chirp back from the other side of the smoke, and found Barry hauling the victims into the plane. Carefully setting them against the seats, the Detective soon found his plane full of newfound citizens. 

“Perfect, it works.” Bruce smiled. He used the fans from the ship to blow the smoke across the scape of Gotham, the smoke entering a crumbling skyscraper, pouring out the windows in droves. 

Just as they were about to leave, the skyscraper began to collapse, screams being heard from inside. They were human screams, like women. “Barry, check the building’s upper floors and evac anyone who’s cured!” Bruce ordered. 

Barry sped into action, taking on his parasite skin once more, dashing into the building using his speed. Bruce watched the parasite dash from the building several times, his arms full of living, breathing people. As Bruce cleared the bottom two floors, he heard a wail. 

Barry paused in his tracks, listening. “Barry, there’s a baby in there!” Bruce cried, pointing to the tenth floor’s window. Inside, there was a cradle. 

Barry dropped the two people he was holding and dashed towards the building, which was coming down. Bruce raced for the plane, taking shelter behind the loading bay doors, his priority to protect the citizens within his plane. However, Barry didn’t return. 

Throwing open the loading bay doors, Bruce raced across the dust-ridden landscape, finding it nothing but rubble. “Barry!” he shouted, voice laced with concern. 

The citizens stood in the doors of the plane, staring at the Detective with wild eyes as he began to throw aside pieces of rock, digging for his lover. Spotting green out of the corner of his eye, he jerked as Hal floated up to him, his scouts in tow. “What’s going on, Bruce?” he asked. 

“Barry’s under there!” Bruce cried. 

“Oh, shit! Guys, half of you take care of those people, the other half help dig! We’ve got a fellow man trapped under this!” Hal ordered. The soldiers did as Hal said, half taking up protective positions around the citizens, the others using their guns as shovels to haul the rock aside. 

Hal used his ring to construct gigantic hands, digging huge piles of the rubble out of the way, tossing it twenty feet to his right, so it wouldn’t be a problem later. 

“Barry! Barry, can you hear me?” Bruce cried repeatedly, tears pricking in his eyes. He told himself he wouldn’t cry. He told himself he wouldn’t get attached. 

A quiet moan met his ears. 

“Barry!” he shouted, taking a huge piece of rubble with both hands and tossing it aside effortlessly. Below him, he could faintly hear a baby crying. “He’s below, Lantern!” Bruce reported, Hal nodding to him. 

“Take a step back, I’ll get them!” Hal requested, creating a huge lift with his ring. Prying the rubble off the spot where Bruce had heard Barry and the baby, Hal floated down into the cavern below. 

“I’m here to get you out, okay?” Hal stated, spotting Barry leaned against a huge piece of concrete, his body effectively supporting it. In his hands, sat an infant of no more than a year. 

“T-take her.” Barry gasped, blood dripping down his forehead. He’d slipped back into his human form, no longer supporting the strength required to remain a parasite. 

“Oh-okay. Bruce’ll be down in a minute for you, okay?” Hal replied. Barry nodded, coughing. Blood splattered against the ground from his mouth, dripping lightly from the corner of his lips.

Floating back to the surface, Hal transferred the child to it’s waiting mother, watching Bruce jump down the hall into the space below. “Bruce, wait!” he called, floating after the Detective. 

Once on Barry’s level, Bruce’s eyes went wide when he took in the state of his lover. The concrete slab he was leaning against had impaled a pipe through his chest, his blood steadily oozing out onto the ground, forming a puddle underneath his seated body. 

Weakly, Barry looked up at Bruce, a small smile on his face. “W-well? How do I look?” he asked. 

Bruce bit his lip, shaking his head. “You look like shit.” he replied. 

Barry laughed lightly, coughing more blood onto the ground. Hal floated down behind Bruce, using his ring to pry the concrete slab back, Barry’s face now pointed towards the sun. 

“It’s so warm.” the youth smiled, basking in the sun. 

“I’m going to get you off that pipe, okay? This is going to hurt.” Bruce explained, gently pulling at Barry’s chest. 

Barry cried out in pain, grasping weakly to Bruce’s arms. Bruce kept pulling, however, until Barry was free of the pipe. Lying Barry against himself, he ran a hand over his lover’s forehead. “I’ll get you home, I promise.” Bruce promised, kissing Barry’s dusty forehead softly. 

“It’s so bright. So pretty, Bruce. Can you see it?” Barry asked, reaching towards the sky. His hand was grasping at nothing, however, just reaching towards the sun. 

Bruce smiled. “Yeah, it’s beautiful, Barry.” Bruce replied, lifting Barry into his arms as he stood up. Hal constructed a lift for the Detective to use to return to the surface, allowing the safe transport of his cargo back to the plane. 

“Let’s go home, alright?” Bruce whispered to Barry, holding him close as he punched in the target coordinates of the Citadel. 

As they arrived, the citizens were carted off for processing, and Bruce carefully carried Barry back to Lexcorp, walking him into the health branch. Two nurses laid Barry on a hospital bed, wheeling him down the hall to the emergency department. Exhausted from the adrenaline rush, Bruce seated himself in a hospital chair in the waiting room, passing out. 

EIGHT HOURS LATER:

Bruce was awoken by a gently shaking of his shoulder. Opening his eyes, he found Lex standing beside him, looking very disdainful. “Mr. Wayne?” the scientist greeted, his voice soft and concerned. 

“Yes, Lex, what is it? Is Barry okay?” Bruce asked back, concern edging him to become full awake. 

“Barry’s going to be fine. However, I want you to come with me.” Lex said quietly. Bruce was the only one in the waiting room. It was mid-afternoon. He stood, following Lex down a series of halls, until they entered the ICU. 

All the beds were empty, save for the last bed on the right. Barry lie upon it, hooked up to various monitors and such, seemingly sleeping. Bruce looked at Barry’s slumbering face, his longing gaze caught by Lex. 

“Unfortunately, the accident caused him to enter a comatose state. He’s not suffering from brain damage, but his body’s taken quite the beating. It’ll take some time to recover, if he does at all, but he’ll be well taken care of.” Lex promised. 

Bruce moved to sit beside the bed, taking Barry’s hand in his own. It was cold, but there was a faint warmth to it. “Get the cure out as soon as possible. I want him to wake up to a brand new world. Better than the one he woke up to last time.” Bruce ordered. 

Lex nodded, silently walking away. 

Bruce sighed, rubbing his eyes. “Barry, I need you.” he whispered. 

Barry lie still, unresponsive. He was silent, locked in a death-like state. 

Sighing again, Bruce stood up, gently kissing Barry on the forehead. He slipped off a single item from his neck, hooking it instead around his lover’s. 

As he walked to the door, he glanced back at Barry, the Bat symbol hanging in silver around his neck. “I love you.” Bruce whispered, turning off the light. 

~ENDE


End file.
